As the first budget bill – transportation, economic development and environmental conservation – went to print Tuesday evening, state lawmakers prepared to kick off what is expected to be a marathon day of voting on Wednesday.

When lawmakers do vote, they will be considering the $254 billion in state spending that Gov. Kathy Hochul announced more than a week ago, plus an additional $6.2 billion from the state’s reserves to pay off New York’s unemployment insurance debt. Sources say to expect a few billion more on top of that in other additional funding for a total price tag north of $260 billion— easily the highest ever.

Last week, when she announced a "general" budget agreement with legislative leaders on her top priorities, Hochul told reporters the state would not pay off the debt, which has long been a drag on businesses, but instead would pay the interest. Tuesday, Hochul explained that the change, which has raised eyebrows among those who feel the governor’s announcement and subsequent "we got it done" media tour is premature, was about providing a "counter" to President Donald Trump’s tariffs.

Hochul’s resistance was, in part, due to her commitment to strengthening the state’s rainy day fund for a time when it is raining. At a news conference to tout a conceptual agreement on a bell-to-bell cellphone ban in schools on a drizzly Albany morning, Hochul was asked if it is indeed raining.

“Yes, it is raining,” she said.

The governor painted a bleak picture of the coming months, and told reporters that paying off the debt was an appropriate use of the funds given the circumstances.

“I think we’re in for a recession,” she said. “I have to do this to protect my businesses, our businesses, but also to protect the people who, if we have a recession, will be losing their jobs,” she said.

Hochul was also put on the spot over the state’s decision to change substantial equivalency regulations for non-public schools. Despite significant opposition from some lawmakers, she characterized the end result as a compromise.

“This is not the elimination of substantial equivalency,” she said. “We’re just simply saying there are other ways to do it so that we can make sure we have the proper balance between children getting the proper education and their parents right to educate them according to the First Amendment.”

Hochul also dismissed concerns by the state Education Department that the prospect of impending changes was "troubling."

“Sometimes, there’s just disagreements,” she said.

As of Tuesday afternoon, the expectation was that bills would continue to appear throughout the night and into the day on Wednesday. The Senate could finish voting by Wednesday night or Thursday. The Assembly will likely take longer, but a conclusion before the end of the week is well within reach.

When the legislature does begin voting on budget bills Wednesday, that outcome will only be possible with a message of necessity from Hochul, which circumvents the normal three-day aging process.

Senate Minority Leader Rob Ortt ripped Hochul’s media tour touting those agreements on her policy priorities Tuesday, as well as her expected reliance on a message of necessity to pass the budget given that it is already over a month late.

“This has got to be the most bizarre thing. She’s talking about the budget as if it’s passed, as if it’s been voted on,” he said. 

Ortt and Republican state Senators called on Hochul to let the three days pass. 

“There has been no urgency this entire time, the governor and Democratic leaders have shown no urgency, so don’t let them fool you that there is urgency now,” Ortt said.

It comes as Republican State Sen. Mark Walczyk is pushing a bill to stop the use of a message of necessity in the case of budget bills. He accused Hochul of “skirting” the legislative in an effort to limit scrutiny of the spending plan.

“I urge my colleagues in the Judiciary Committee to pass this bill on Wednesday, so we can protect our democratic principles and serve the people of New York as we were elected to do,” he said.

In a moment of bipartisanship, State Sen. Liz Krueger took to the Senate floor earlier Tuesday to make her opposition of using a message of necessity clear.

“Let’s be honest, there is no emergency,” she said, before recounting her unsuccessful bid 23 years ago to sue over the unnecessary usage of messages of necessity when the budget was negotiated by then Gov. George Pataki, Senate Majority Leader Joe Bruno and Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver.

“I believe we will have budget bills with messages of necessity and it’s a shame.”

Deputy Senate Majority Leader Mike Gianaris had harsh words for those in opposition to speeding up the process across the aisle.

“The fact is the governor decides when a message is appropriate, the majority of this body decides whether to accept it, that is the essence of the democratic process,” he said. “If you don’t have the numbers to affect the outcome, that’s on you my friends. The people of this state have chosen to put you in the minority.”

Good-government groups like Reinvent Albany have continually criticized the use of a message of necessity in the passing of budget bills and non-emergency situations. Executive Director John Kaehny pointed the the minuscule amount of time the public and even lawmakers will have to review final language relative to how much there is to review.

“No one on the outside, and frankly, most legislators, are not going to have time to read these nine budget bills that are going to be 15-20,000 pages long,” he said.

We reached out to Hochul’s office for comment on the usage of messages of necessity in passing the budget. We did not hear back.